Vertigrow wins $10,000 in Faculty’s Prizes in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Competition

March 30, 2011

Luc Lendrum (Engineering, shown above) and his business partner Duane van Gaalen (Telfer) took home first prize in the Undergraduate Category for their company Vertigrow, which focuses on the design, installation and maintenance of indoor vertical gardens. Recently, the duo also won a Bootstrap Golden Boot Award in the Best Technique for Sales/Pre Sales/Launch Category. In addition, the pair placed second in the Wes Nicol Business Plan Competition, pocketing a $2000 prize in the process.

Plus, Lendrum and van Gaalen have access to the Brunsfield Centre work space at the Lees Campus, where they built their prototype.

This project came to be during an entrepreneurship class. While developing a business plan as a class project, van Gaalen and Lendrum decided that the opportunity taking shape was too good to pass up.

Vertigrow’s gardens are automated hydroponic systems, and they act as a bioreactor in which volatile organic compounds are broken down by microbes living at the plant root level. In addition to its considerable aesthetic value, the systems deliver proven health benefits in both home and office settings.

Since November, the team has been researching future markets and developing the technology required. The initial prototype was tested in the offices of Shopify, a local company.

Moving forward, Duane and Luc will be experimenting with several plant, material and moisture variables as they develop their modular production technology. At the same time, the two students will be actively searching out clients to provide feedback and insight on the designs. They will also invest contest winnings in the next stages of the company’s development.

To quote Luc Lendrum:

“Apart from the prize money, the business plan competitions have been valuable for three reasons: they forced us to think out and plan for every aspect and variable of our business as we moved forward; they gave us the opportunity to hone the delivery of our pitch to a roomful of potential investors; they were a great source of constructive criticism on how to improve our business and our product.”

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